Maynard, MA, USA: Beacon-Villager newspaper column on local history, observations on nature and recreational activities, plus an occasional health-related article. Columns from 2009-11 collected into book "MAYNARD: History and Life Outdoors." Columns from 2012-14 collected into book "Hidden History of Maynard." - David A. Mark

Pages

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

ArtSpace Building Centennial

Maynard High School 1940 (Courtesy Maynard Historical Society)

Life-long Maynard residents 70 and older would have
graduated high school from the building that now hosts ArtSpace. When viewed
from Summer Street, the wing on the right side was Maynard's fourth high
school. It opened on October 2, 1916, making the class of 1917 the first graduating
class. Construction cost $61,600. The town's voters had approved the idea of a
new high school in 1913, then more specifically a school on this site in 1915.
This is the part of the structure that is 100 years old. The rest was built ten
years later.

In 1916 Maynard had a population of 6,770, with town water
(but no town sewer system), electric street lights, houses lit by gas lamps or
electric lights, more horses than cars, a train station, and a trolley line
servicing Hudson, Stow, Maynard, Acton and Concord. There were five hotels.
Silent movies were shown at Colonial Hall, above what is now Roasted Peppers
restaurant.

Maynard High School graduating class of 1917 (Courtesy MHS)

High school classes were at this site from 1916 to 1964,
then relocated to a new building on the south side of town. The vacated building
became EmersonJunior
High School (1964-1980), later renamed FowlerMiddle School
(1980-2000). The left wing - initially housing FowlerElementary school
- opened in 1926, as did the center building, containing George Washington
Auditorium.

Back in 1916-17 the school year was Labor Day to the end of June.
Morning classes were 8:30 to 11:45. Afternoons 1:15 to 3:45. Half-days
Wednesdays. There was no school lunch, nor any school bus transportation. The
school had eight classrooms and 165 students – 78 boys and 87 girls. In that
era school was mandatory through age 16, so the two lower grades had about 60
students each, whereas there were only 30 in the junior class and 16 in the
graduating class.

The Principal was Horace F. Bates, graduate of Harvard. His
salary was $1,480. Teachers included graduates from WellesleyCollege, BrownCollege and BostonUniversity.
Curriculum was basic – divided into Academic and Commercial tracks. Music and
art were each taught once a week. No foreign languages. No AP courses.

Maynard High School baseball team, spring of 1917

The school was actually nameless until 1932, when "MaynardHigh School" was approved at a Town
Meeting vote. The year after the new school opened football was re-started as a
school team, after twelve years without. The team lost the first game by a
score of 59-0.

As noted above, the high school relocated to the south side
of town in 1964. The elementary school was next, followed last by FowlerMiddle
School in 2000. Four years earlier the town had
voted to appoint a Fowler School Building Reuse Committee. The conclusion,
reached in 1999, was that the only realistic plan was to lease the space to a
non-profit arts/cultural group.

The official transfer of the building to ArtSpace Inc. took
place January 2001. Today, ArtSpace provides 43 studio spaces for 80 artists.
Demand remains high, with perhaps two or three studios becoming available each
year. Rent for the artists is about nine dollars per square foot. The money
raised suffices to pay for staff and operating costs. The town owns the building
and property but pays nothing toward maintenance or operating costs.

ArtSpace main entrance, in the 90 year old part of the building.
Click on any photo to enlarge.

ArtSpace continues to be fully occupied by artists, some in
place since the start, and has a waiting list of applicants. Priority is given
to Maynard residents. Many of the studios are open to the public every second
Saturday of every month. The ArtSpace Gallery is a wonderful exhibition
space presenting new and important contemporary art by both in-house and
nationally known artists. All this offers a wonderful - and free - opportunity
to see art, chat with artists and buy their art. Acme Theater offers a place
for people to collaborate in all aspects of theater production and performance.
Together, these organizations are an essential part of Maynard's cultural variety
and strength. More information at www.artspacemaynard.com and www.acmetheater.com.